Marina’s Academy Newsletter – January 2018

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Digital downloads are the most profitable products sold on the web.

The technology for selling and buying digital downloads from the web has progressed greatly, thanks to musicians who pioneered the technology. And because digital downloads don’t incur any packaging or shipping costs, they are the most profitable. They are also the most popular because they can be downloaded and enjoyed immediately. There are very few products that can offer that kind of instant gratification, and when customers want their books, music, images, and instructional videos they want them now.

How difficult is it for an author to set up their own bookstore?

To find out, this month I set up a bookstore on my website, marinareznor.com. The cost? $0.00, and after paying transaction processing costs I stand to make upwards of 90% on each sale. That’s a great profit margin, but what are the hassles? You are your own customer service person, and paying taxes due to a myriad of countries around the world are going to be a headache (that we will deal with in next month’s newsletter). If the musicians can do it, so can authors.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” equal_height=”yes” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column centered_text=”true” column_padding=”padding-2-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color=”#ececec” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/2″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1517406438164{border-top-width: 10px !important;border-top-color: #171e77 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”][/vc_column_text][nectar_btn size=”jumbo” button_style=”regular” button_color_2=”Accent-Color” icon_family=”none” url=”https://www.marinareznor.com/product/fowled/” text=”Try My Bookstore”][vc_column_text]

Download a digital copy of my book, Fowled, with this coupon valued $3.99

Coupon: WRW-Fowled

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column centered_text=”true” column_padding=”padding-2-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color=”#ececec” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/2″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1517406365978{border-top-width: 10px !important;border-top-color: #171e77 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”]If you’d like to experience the full payment gateway checkout process You’ll have to spend the $3.99, but forward me the invoice email afterwards and I will reimburse you for it: marina@marinareznor.com[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

Is eCommerce right for you?

Before we talk about how I did it (and your eyes glaze over), let’s see if having an eStore is the right decision for you (read the handout here). If you have your books in digital format, you should consider the follow: Good points:

It depends on the volume of sales you make a month versus your hosting costs, but you can make a very high profit
You have direct control over pricing
You collect all the sales information, including email addresses

Bad points:

You have to provide customer support, and this can be a time-sucking nightmare
If you are selling physical products like paperbacks, you have to do order fulfillment promptly
You are responsible for remitting applicable sales and VAT taxes in all countries you sell to
You must ensure the payment gateway is secure (PCI compliant)

Is there a way to do eCommerce without too much hassle?

Great question, and the answer is yes, but it will cost you a little bit (read the handout here). There are several excellent alternatives to self-hosting your own WordPress eCommerce site. Wix.com, SquareSpace.com, and Weebly.com all have easy drag-n-drop site-builder editors. Their templates are pretty but nothing interesting, so you’d best have excellent photography to set yourself apart. They do have great payment gateways, solid support, and some robust marketing. If you are a small seller, and plan to stay small, these would be a good fit for you. Shopify.com – Read this excellent article by Nate Shivar, updated January 12, 2018, for a great overview. Shopify is the most powerful of the website builder eCommerce options, and in my opinion worth every cent. The major difference between these services and do-it-yourself is the cost. I’ve never used website and website store builders before, but based on colleagues experiences I feel confident pointing you in those directions. If you try them, please let me know how it went.

No, Marina, I want to do this myself.

That’s the spirit! Read on.

Go to Academy Resource page (Password: fowled)

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Have a question? Comment? Suggestion?

Email me at marina@marinareznor.com

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THIS MONTH’S HOW-TO: Setting up WooCommerce on your self-hosted website

If you self-host your WordPress site, your two best choices are WooCommerce (free) and Easy Digital Downloads (free).

If you are only going to sell digital download products, I strongly recommend Easy Digital Downloads.

EDD is well loved for very good reasons, and if you’re only doing digital downloads WooCommerce would be overkill.

1) How to add WooCommerce: here’s the best step-by-step tutorial, by WPBeginner.com 2) How to set up downloadable products: here’s a great tutorial by BobWP.com

Note that when you set up your download products, its important to check both Virtual and Downloadable.
As noted on the How-To, I set my book title up as a Group, and the different formats – ePub, mobi, iBook – as Simple products. I then linked the book Group to the Simple products.

3) Set up taxes:

Here’s a great 2017 video from WPTuts that shows you step-by-step how to set up taxes in WooCommerce. We will be covering adding VAT tax calculators later this year.

4) Set up payment gateways:

I have used Stripe.com ($0.30 + 2.75%/transaction) for years and have never lost a minute of sleep. I use their WooCommerce plugin for the credit cards.
I install the Braintree PayPal Gateway plugin for PayPal functionality (PayPal transaction rates). The interface is more robust than the regular PayPal gateway, and if you don’t want to use Stripe for credit cards you can use BrainTree PayPal credit card interface. I, personally, don’t like giving PayPal (or anyone else) that big a hand in my functionality.
At the moment, I cannot recommend the Square.com WooCommerce interface.
GooglePay and ApplePay are self-populating options depending on the platform the reader is using.

5) Shipping: Since you are selling downloadable products (for now), we don’t need to set up Shipping 6) Optional add-ons – You can digitally watermark your downloads with the WooCommerce PDF Watermark plugin ($79/year) After you have added WooCommerce, configured it via Settings, and added your Products, you are now ready to test. I recommend creating a test coupon and test on many different devices, so that you can see how the process changes slightly between browsers and devices. Testing the payment gateways via test credentials is, frankly, a lot of hassle that I reserve for large sites. For small sites I simply lower the price to $0.99 and run a few live orders. The testing cost per order is about $0.33, which is well worth my time. You can also cancel the orders and refund yourself.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” bg_color=”#a37a5b” scene_position=”center” text_color=”custom” custom_text_color=”#ffffff” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-1-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ font_color=”#ffffff” column_shadow=”small_depth” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

NAGGING

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”padding-3-percent” column_padding_position=”right” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][image_with_animation image_url=”989″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” border_radius=”none” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”2/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]Make sure the copyright in your footer is updated to 2018 A current copyright in the footer of a website is a strong indication that your site is active and trustworthy. Make a note to check yours every January 1st and update it if needed. If you are running a WordPress.org site the date will automatically update.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” bg_color=”#a37a5b” scene_position=”center” text_color=”custom” custom_text_color=”#ffffff” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-1-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ font_color=”#ffffff” column_shadow=”small_depth” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

REAL LIFE PLOT DEVICES

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”padding-3-percent” column_padding_position=”right” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][image_with_animation image_url=”1001″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_blank” border_radius=”none” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%” img_link=”https://arstechnica.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”2/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]Two from Ars Technica this month: The US is (finally) being hit by ATM Jackpot thieves, and publicly available data was assembled to make a heatmap that accidentally revealed secret military installations around the world. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” bg_color=”#a37a5b” scene_position=”center” text_color=”custom” custom_text_color=”#ffffff” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-1-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ font_color=”#ffffff” column_shadow=”small_depth” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

RESISTANCE IS FUTILE (AT LEAST MINE IS)

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”padding-3-percent” column_padding_position=”right” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][image_with_animation image_url=”1002″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_blank” border_radius=”none” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%” img_link=”https://speckyboy.com/best-free-fonts/”][/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”2/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]SpeckyBoy.com has pulled together a very nicely curated list of free fonts, including my workhorse Fira Sans and Pier Sans.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” bg_color=”#a37a5b” scene_position=”center” text_color=”custom” custom_text_color=”#ffffff” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-1-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ font_color=”#ffffff” column_shadow=”small_depth” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

WASTE TIME LIKE A PROFESSIONAL WEB DEVELOPER

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”padding-3-percent” column_padding_position=”right” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][image_with_animation image_url=”929″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_blank” border_radius=”none” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%” img_link=”https://www.blog.google/topics/arts-culture/exploring-art-through-selfies-google-arts-culture/”][/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”2/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]Google Arts & Culture Selfie App (for iOS and Android) This app is the new world-wide hotness, and is making people actually care about art. You first add the app to your smartphone and take your selfie, and Google uses it scarily good facial recognition software to match your face with several works of art. Is it accurate? Results vary, but there is usually some resemblance (even if it’s not the one you want, although I’m north of 50 and matched with a child).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” bg_color=”#a37a5b” scene_position=”center” text_color=”custom” custom_text_color=”#ffffff” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-1-percent” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ font_color=”#ffffff” column_shadow=”small_depth” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

IN NEXT MONTH’S NEWSLETTER

WHAT I’M WORKING ON

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]I am continuing poking around building my online bookstore. I will be investigating currency converters and VAT tax calculators, and perhaps finding an inexpensive way to make the email receipts prettier.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][divider line_type=”Full Width Line” line_thickness=”3″ divider_color=”extra-color-3″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” bg_color=”#ececec” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom” shape_type=””][vc_column column_padding=”padding-2-percent” column_padding_position=”right” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]

My name is Marina Reznor, and I am a romance author by night and a web developer by day. I’ve been hanging around the internet for a long time, and enjoy sharing the information I come across*.

Have questions? Comments? Let’s be friends.

Email me here: Marina

Did a good friend forward you this email? Click here: Join the Academy and receive it every month yourself.

*I am not paid to recommend or advertise any tool or service, and if I was I would clearly disclose the fact.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][divider line_type=”Full Width Line” line_thickness=”3″ divider_color=”extra-color-3″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][/vc_column][/vc_row]